


The Black Sea

by replicasex



Category: Teen Wolf (TV), Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines (Video Game), World of Darkness (Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - World of Darkness (Games) Setting, M/M, Mystery, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-25
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2019-02-20 09:26:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,070
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13143768
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/replicasex/pseuds/replicasex
Summary: A vampire of the Camarilla makes his way to Beacon Hills, searching for a mysterious killer of humans and vampires alike.





	The Black Sea

**Author's Note:**

> I stood in the long   
> Whispering night, waiting for something, a sign, the approach   
> of a distant light, and I imagined you coming closer,   
> the dark waves of your hair mingling with the sea,   
> and the dark become desire, and desire the arriving light. 
> 
> -Mark Strand

Night, forever. But within that dark lay a house surrounded on all sides by forest. Light poured ecstatic from every window, every crack and doorjamb. He was nervous. Werewolves and kindred had never been allies, especially in California. The Prince had been firm, however. He would make the long, dangerous trip from Seattle to the wilderness of NorCal. The ever-present stink of kine that permeated his city, his home, was diffuse here. Empty somehow. It had been nearly a hundred years since he had visited anywhere remotely rural. His people, such as they were, were creatures of the city, the urban nightlife.

He had dedicated his unlife to the clan, to the Camarilla. Order was everything. He would risk the Final Death to preserve it. He would even consort with these … beasts. He stood and watched and waited.

*

Stiles was in the kitchen when a shiver went down his spine. Derek and Isaac were in the house with him, watching TV. Isaac liked to watch college football and Derek, indulgent, had bought a huge TV to accommodate him. Stiles’ hearing went tinny, he was afraid. He could feel someone at the edges of the property. He had laid wards – half believing and half a skeptic as he chanted and painted trees in arcane symbols – and he suddenly knew what they were like when they were active. Derek had already stopped laughing at whatever Isaac had said. He was looking at him.

“Stiles?” He asked. He could hear Stiles’ heartbeat.

“Someone’s out by the treeline.” Stiles said. He was surprisingly calm. Derek cocked his head in that perfect imitation of a dog that always made Stiles laugh. He didn’t, now.

“I don’t hear anything. No heartbeats or breathing.” Derek said in a neutral voice. After Stiles’ experience with the nogitsune he had been careful not to sound skeptical. Isaac stood up, shook his head.

“Me either.” He said with a half shrug. They both jumped as the door knocked a firm rap against the wood tap tap tap. Stiles eyed Derek.

“Stay here.” He said, voice low, fangs slurring his voice. He and Isaac made a break for the door. Stiles waited a half beat and followed them through to the foyer. Derek had gotten himself under control when he flung the door open.

‘Hello,” Sounded a low voice, melodic, cultured. It sounded beautiful. Stiles stood behind Derek and Isaac before the door. Even from there he could see the flash of red sparking from Derek’s eyes. The figure on the doorstep was a man. He was a little pale but otherwise quite ordinary. Except for the eyes, somehow. Stiles had seen enough predators in sheep’s clothing to recognize the signs. “Please Mr. Hale, I mean no harm. I’m flattered you consider me dangerous.” Again, the voice was liquid and modulated. Perfect somehow, enough to make Stiles’ palms itch.

“Derek?” Isaac asked, clearly confused.

“Vampire.” Derek gritted out, fangs well past his lips. Behind them, Stiles’ eyes popped out.

“You told me they didn’t exist!” Stiles blurted out, indignant. Stiles could see the man – the vampire – roll its eyes.

“Really, Mr. Hale I think –“ The vampire started.

“Shut up.” Derek said, his voice flat. The vampire inclined his head slightly. Derek looked over his shoulder, just long enough to glare at Stiles for coming to the front door. “They don’t bother us.” Derek said finally. “They have no reason to.”

“Um, excuse me there’s all kinds of reasons!” Stiles was flapping his arms. “I’m chock full of reasons they might bother us!” Derek’s face scrunched up.

“They’re afraid of us.” He said, more to Isaac than anyone else. “We’re stronger than they are.” He narrowed his eyes at the vampire in front of him. “Why are you here? Why are you outside of your territory? Why are you in mine?”

“All excellent questions.” The vampire replied. He moved his eyes over to Stiles. It felt physical, like a soft cloth drawing over him. Stiles’ mind went numb and he could see outside of himself. And suddenly it was gone and the vampire was inside the house, hoisted up by its neck. Derek’s claws were out and threatening the pallid skin. Derek shook him.

“Don’t try that shit here.” Derek said. “I’d kill you for even looking at him.” The vampire nodded and even managed an apologetic smile.

“Apologies,” The vampire choked out. “Just curious. Rare for kine to run with wolves.”

“What the fuck Derek.” Stiles finally managed. He felt a little shaky but he wasn’t sure why. But Derek was way out of line. “He literally just looked at me. I know I told you that that possessive shit was sexy but this is going way too far.” Isaac groaned and covered his face. He was easy to embarrass. Derek dropped the vampire back down to the ground, eyes watching him.

“He wasn’t just looking. Don’t look him in the eye. Vampires can play tricks with your mind.” Derek’s claws were still out. Now it was Stiles who glared at the vampire. Well, at the vampire’s shoulder anyway.

“Listen Obi-wan Kenobi I have had more than my fair share of mind fucks and I …” Stiles began.

“Again, apologies. Truly I was just curious. Humans are rarely in the company of werewolves. I meant no offense.” Of course, he was causing quite a bit of offense in Stiles’ book. He had only apologized to Derek.

“Why are you here?” Derek repeated.

“Yes. First, I bring you the personal greetings of the Prince of Seattle.” Derek snorted and the vampire started cutting through the bullshit. “Which I know means very little to a werewolf like you. Still, I am here in an official capacity on behalf of the Camarilla. I am investigating a series of … incidents occurring in our territory and we, by which I mean the Camarilla, believes the source of these incidents has taken up residence in your lovely town.” A bunch of nonsense, Stiles figured. Now that he was concentrating properly, focusing like Deaton had taught him, he could hear the hollow pitch behind the beautiful voice. It was put on, an affectation. An irresistibly good one.

“I came here to announce myself to you, as the resident … alpha of Beacon Hills.” The vampire continued. “My name is Cerex.” The vampire smiled. “An old word from my youth.”

The vampire waited with an air of expectance. Derek growled and stuttered out, “Be welcome.” He shrugged a shoulder in Isaac’s direction and suddenly Isaac took a defensive position to the right of the door. Derek wasn’t taking any chances.

“I have no intention of calling on your hospitality, Mr. Hale. Have no fear of that. I’ve made my own arrangements for my stay here. I merely wished to inform you of my presence and, of course, to warn you. The entity I am tracking – well, it is responsible at least for the deaths of five of my kindred and more than a dozen kine. A true monster, if you’ll forgive the irony.” Stiles felt his mind going numb and shook himself. Talking with this thing was like waltzing through a minefield with a blindfold on.

Cerex inclined his head again. “Mr. Hale, Mr. Lahey – and to your mutual friend: Have a very fine evening.” Derek walked the vampire to the door and firmly closed it behind him. Isaac went over to a window and looked through the drapes.

“Okay.” Stiles announced. “Someone is going to explain something.”

*

“So you’re telling me the world is run by vampires.” Stiles says over ice cream. He felt he deserved a little treat after another near-death experience.

“No.” Derek said, cringing. He was truly awful at explaining things. He also had ice cream in his beard. “I just meant they’re political. My parents always said their money was more dangerous than their fangs were.” An awkward pause at the mention of his parents.

“Excuse me; I think fangs are very dangerous!” Stiles needed this point to be made. By now the entire pack was there. Scott, Lydia, Danny – even Jackson had shown up, though he had spent the first ten minutes of their meeting complaining. “And you didn’t have him go all Jedi mind trick on you, that shit was powerful.”

“I meant what I said, though – they’re scared of us. Wolves are stronger than they are and their powers don’t usually work on us. Not well, at least. They avoid us like the plague.”

“So we believe this … vampire when it says it’s here for a good reason?” Lydia asks, pausing to heap disdain on the word vampire. “We trust its motives?”

“I don’t trust anything, especially not a vampire.” Derek argues. “But it could have gotten around town without us noticing easy enough. Isaac and I never even heard it approach.” He added. Scott looked worried.

“No smell?” Scott asks. The idea seemed to offend him.

“Nope.” Isaac replies. “No heartbeat or breathing either, it was freaky.”

“They’re undead.” Danny says slowly. “Really? That’s a thing?”

“Yeah, I guess.” Derek says. “I’ve never met one until today. I know Peter had talked to one when he was younger, but …” Even now, even with everything that had happened, Derek seemed to regret putting his uncle in the ground again.

“So what do we know about them?” Lydia asks briskly. “What are their weaknesses? Sunlight, stakes, garlic, what?” Derek runs a hand through his hair.

“I know the sun thing’s real. Fire kills them. But the stake thing just paralyzes them I think. I remember Peter saying they were always afraid of being ‘staked out to meet sunrise’.”

“Their strengths?” Lydia asks, rummaging in her purse for something to write with. Danny fumbles with his bag and hands her a laptop. They dimple at each other.

“Speed and strength.” Derek says. “Well above a human’s but not as strong as a wolf.”

“Jedi mind tricks!” Stiles puts in. Derek smiles at him and the rest of the pack share a brief moment of nausea at the sight of them.

“Mind powers. Some are more powerful than others. Older vampires are stronger than new ones.” Derek pauses and looks down at the table. “Then there are some … weird rumors.”

“Rumors.” Jackson mimicked, acid leeching into his tone. “This should be good.” Derek glared at him.

“I’ve heard all kinds of things. When I was in New York – there are a lot of them in New York apparently – one of the packs Laura and I ran with said some vamps could shift into wolves as well.” Derek looks at his hands. “And … well, this guy told Laura some of them could turn invisible.”

“For some reason ‘this guy’ sounds like he believed in UFOs and the X-Files.” Jackson said, cheering up now that he had someone to mock.

“You’re not far off.” Derek muttered. “We don’t know anything for sure.”

“We should talk to Allison.” Scott put in. He looked around at the glaring werewolves. “What?! Her family literally hunts things like this; they probably have better info than a UFO nut.” Derek pinched the bridge of his nose and nodded his head with his eyes closed.

“Call her. Ask her to come over with her family’s bestiary.” He looked at Scott. “Don’t’ even start.” He added when Scott’s eyes went sly.

*

So, that was a werewolf. Werewolves. Brutal little creatures, Cerex thought. But the boy … the vampire smiled. There was no time to mix business with pleasure, but the boy had been a genuine surprise. The little he had read off the boy sent tingles of excitement in his blood. At least he had brought entertainment to distract him. The two ghouls in front of him were panting heavily with their exertion. Neither of them preferred their own sex but they put on this show out of love for their master.

Cerex rose and brushed the closest ghoul’s sweaty hair. How long had he had these two? A few decades, he decided. Time flew when you didn’t age. They weren’t his favorites but they’d do in a pinch. They were beautiful and obedient and completely expendable. The fact that they couldn’t be trusted to be more than walking blood bags was less important. They would have no important tasks here save guarding him through daylight. And they would each die before letting harm come to him.

That boy, Cerex thought, is going to be trouble.

 


End file.
